


Automatonic Electronic Harmonics

by unholy_bitch_yunalesca



Category: Almost Human
Genre: Fluff, John in Denial, John is emotionally retarded, M/M, Slow Build, Slow Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-12-22
Updated: 2014-01-03
Packaged: 2018-01-05 15:31:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,772
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1095659
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/unholy_bitch_yunalesca/pseuds/unholy_bitch_yunalesca
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Dorian gets his own place, and John helps him to move in.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Business as usual

“John, are you sure this is the right place?” Dorian frowned at the building that they had just pulled up outside of. Dirty grey stone and windows that were barely visible from grime came together in the form of a run-down apartment block. It was just outside the city centre, in a dodgy sort-of neighbourhood.

John peered out from under the windscreen. “Well, it’s not the Four Seasons, but hey – you’re not a superstar, are you?” John smirked at Dorian, who gave him a weary look in reply.

“C’mon,” he hit his Synthetic partner on the chest with the back of his hand. “Let’s take a look inside.”

Inside was worse, if anything. Rubbish littered the floor and gave the room a sour smell. Filthy wallpaper peeled off the walls in patches. Rot was evident on the wood. There was no furniture, save for a maggot-infested couch.

“I’ve seen better-looking crime scenes,” Dorian remarked miserably as he kicked at a brown crumpled up sheet of newspaper that littered the rotting wooden floor. “By my estimate, no-one has lived here for at least ten years- ”

John swung about suddenly, hands up in defeat as he faced Dorian.

“Look, I’m sorry, but this was the best that Maldonado could do. She could get in trouble for this as it is – away from the Precinct, you should be supervised by an officer or someone like Rudy while you’re…uh…” he gestured to the general area Dorian occupied “…charging or whatever it is you do at night. So I’m sorry, I know it sucks, but at least you’re away from the Ken dolls, yeah?”  

Dorian held John’s gaze steady while he talked and smiled faintly.

“Of course. I understand that you and Maldonado put yourselves out for me here – I’m sorry for complaining," Dorian still looked dejected, but he sighed in acceptance. "I forgot the effort that you both made to get me this small piece of freedom."

Dorian bent down and picked a small few pieces of rubbish off the floor. John felt bad – Dorian wasn’t some sort of animal: he deserved better than this. He stared down at him, eyebrows furrowed and brain whirring.  _I'll probably regret this later...but what the hell!_

"Hey, I've been due a day off for a while now, so how about we clean this place up, starting tomorrow?" John dropped to his knees and helped him, only Dorian had stopped and stared at John in that analytical way of his. 

"Are you sure?" His voice was soft and strangely hopeful. John grinned. Making that offer had been the right thing to do. Those blue eyes, despite being artificial, held so much emotion and feelings that it scared John sometimes. He got to his feet and brushed the knees of his trousers. 

"Yeah, yeah - I've nothing better to be doing anyway! Let me just ring a friend or two to see if they're available to help." John moved off outside to make the call. Dorian continued to collect the muddy bits of newspaper from the floor, smiling unknown to himself. 

 

* * *

 

One of John's friends that he contacted agreed to send over two guys to meet him at the apartment's address in the morning. They had been friends since childhood in the neighbourhood he lived in with his parents, and had went on to become a contractor. John couldn't wait to tell Dorian the good news: they were going to have professional help in fixing up Dorian's new home.

"Are you sure this is okay, John?" His partner asked on the drive back to the precinct. "I wouldn't want you to be spending time or money on this - I understand how important both of these things are to humans."

"'Course it's okay! No, my pal will do this for free - I told him what needs to be done and he said that wasn't much and I did him a turn when he was going through a rough time a while back, so we're even now."

"And your time?"

John made several quick glances over to Dorian, torn between not wanting to take his eyes off the road for too long and needing to see what he meant by that.

"What time?"

The android sighed, as though he was dealing with a grumpy, forgetful elderly person and was begging the lord for patience.

"Your free time. I know you don't have any hobbies-"

"Hey, I used to have plenty-"

"-or a social life-"

"-what!? I'll have you know-"

"-but I wouldn't like it if you were spending time on this if you would prefer to spend it otherwise."

John had drawn his mouth into a tight line, eyebrows furrowed. 

"I'll spend my free time how I goddamn please, alright?"

Dorian fought to keep from smiling. "Alright."

"And right now, I choose to spend it doing up that shithole you've been handed, alright?"

"Alright." Dorian echoed again, full-blown grin on his face.

"Good. Now that we're clear on that." John still hadn't looked properly at Dorian.

"If you say so."

The rest of the ride went smoothly and silently; John with his trademark scowl and Dorian with his usual smirk. 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello again!
> 
> Due to the overwhelming kind comments and feedback I received from my first fic, I turned this little plot bunny into another one! 
> 
> The chapters will be shorter than those of 'Are we human?' but there will be more chapters. (Not sure how many just yet!)
> 
> I will be going to London on the 26th (Coriolanus! Woohoo!) so I'll try to get another chapter or two out before then, hopefully :D


	2. Tear it all apart

The two guys that John’s friend had sent arrived the next morning while John and Dorian had already started the big clean, only arriving themselves shortly before. When John went to pick Dorian up from the precinct for the last time, he was struck by the thought of how he was basically helping a robot to move into his own house. _But calling Dorian a 'robot' is hardly fair - he's proven to be much, much more than that time and time again!_ He thought of the banter the two of them have in the car, whether they be bickering like a married couple over which takeaway to stop off at (despite the fact that Dorian doesn't even eat, he does far too much dictating about where John stops to grab a bite), or Dorian teasing John over Valerie Stahl and imitating her voice.

The four of them stripped the peeling wallpaper off the walls and after that they started pulling up the rotted floorboards. They three humans were exhausted after a few hours so Dorian served them cups of coffee that John thought to bring along. John noticed that his mood was brighter than usual today. He seemed to be genuinely enjoying tearing his new home apart in order to build it up again.       

"Thank you so much for all your help." Dorian said to the men his friend sent as they announced they were leaving for the day. John strolled out into the car park as the car disappeared down the street.     

"Hey, how about we stop for a takeaway on the way to Rudy's?"  

Dorian turned and tilted his head slightly. "Why would we be going to Rudy's?"    

"To make sure you're not missing anything for your...alone time."      

John cringed at his wording. _Why do I have a problem with this lately? It's like I can't say anything to Dorian these days without it sounding like a creepy innuendo._     

Luckily his partner wasn't privy to John's thoughts.   

"My 'alone time' consists of updating files and running scans. It is best if these are done daily so minimise chances of something slipping past my checks," Dorian rattled off in that musical intonation of his.

"Yeah, but what if something did slip past? We'll just ask Rudy if there's bits and pieces he can give you if you need to perform surgery on yourself." John grinned as he patted him on the shoulder when crossing to the driver’s seat. 

"I'm sure I could do a better job myself anyway," Dorian grinned back. "I still haven't forgiven you using chewed bubble-gum and a filthy q-tip to repair my head damage." 

"Hey! That was an emergency situation - I acted on the spot using the tools I had. You should be grateful. You'd be on the scrap heap if it wasn't for me." 

John started the engine so he almost missed what Dorian said next:

"Yeah...I would be."

He said it so quietly and with such feeling, while looking out of the window, it took John back a little. He sounded like he was thanking John for letting him stay with him and be a cop, for worrying about his well-being when he had no chest-plate in a shootout, for putting up with him when he tells John the harsh truths about himself...for everything. John didn't reply to that, opting for pretending he didn't hear it. Instead, he said something about how hungry he was and what takeaway place they should go to but in the back of his mind he was mulling Dorian's quiet words over and over. He also realised during the drive that Dorian is the only one who's allowed to call him out on his bullshit. _When did I let that happen?_

 

* * *

 

Rudy's was a different experience than usual. He rushed around his lab in gleeful excitement after learning of Dorian’s newfound independence, muttering scientific terms under his breath that escaped John’s comprehension.

"Oh, oh, this is a must." He held up a fountain pen lookalike. "This." A click, and a thin red laser shot into the ceiling. He fumbled with it to turn it off. Wisps of fine plaster drifted down over their heads.

"Um, that, um, was a very powerful laser that could slice through almost anything. Extremely handy if you get water damage in any synthetic tissues-"111      

"Thanks, but no thanks, Rudy." John interrupted. _Is he trying to make Dorian kill himself?!?_ He turned away and started browsing the other side of the lab grumbling "Everything's a 'must'," to himself. The moment he turned, however, Dorian slid up to a crestfallen Rudy and took the mini laser pen from him, whispering thanks and promising that he'll use it wisely.

 

* * *

 

Twenty minutes later, the partners were unloading Rudy's housewarming gifts from the boot of the car.       

"Jesus," John said through gritted teeth as he lifted a very heavy machine, not unlike a coffee maker. _He probably fashioned it from a goddamn coffee maker and added a ton weight of crap to it, the brilliant bastard._ "You could start your own lab with the amount of equipment he's given you."

"Now John, I believe this was your idea." His synthetic partner retorted, smiling that trademark smirk of his. 

"Well, it's turning out very differently from what I expected." 

They lugged the equipment from the car to the smaller room that was probably a bedroom at some stage. Once finished, John flopped down on the mangy, maggot-infested couch that they had thrown a blanket over for the time being. They'll be getting rid of it soon anyway. That stirred more thoughts up in him.

"We'd better go furniture shopping soon - I know you don't need to rest like humans do but it would be nice to have a few essentials, yeah?"

Dorian glanced over from where he stood by the cracked fireplace. His blue eyes almost glowed in the dark room.

"Yeah, that would be nice."

They stayed like that for a little while longer, before John said he'd better head home and get some sleep. Tomorrow was the Saturday so that meant he could sleep in...

...but the thought of Dorian standing, patiently waiting for hours in this bare flat for John to arrive twisted something painful inside him. He couldn't leave him hanging like that, especially since he's invested an entire day and a half of work into this project himself. 

"I'll see you bright and early tomorrow so! Get a good few hours of updates and scans, you hear?" He quipped as he was on his way out the door.

Dorian grinned, teeth bright and eyes twinkling.

"Of course. Good night, John."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello again! 
> 
> I actually got around to updating this! I probably won't get a chance until I'm home again and that will be on the 29th - but this (and all the other great Almost Human fics out there!) should keep you ticking over.
> 
> Merry Christmas to you all and a happy New Year! 
> 
> P.s. I got the title of this chapter from an awesome song by an awesome Irish band: In Their Thousands - you should check them out! :)


	3. Changing Tactics

"John."

"Now push!"

"John."

"A little higher!"

"John!"

He stubbed his toe on the door jamb and cursed.

"What?" He snapped at his partner. The couch between them was firmly stuck in the doorway and was showing no signs of moving.

"We need to change tactics. This side is too wide-"

"What other side is there? We've tried them all!"

One of the guys helping them knew someone who would lay down new floorboards for cheap and while he was in the flat working his magic, the duo decided to buy some basic furniture to go on the new floor. They picked out the pieces easily enough, it was only the moving of them from the van to inside that proved difficult. They had taken special care in buying pieces that could be taken away on the same day as purchase; just to make sure that Dorian wouldn’t have to wait for his furniture. The moving truck driver himself had given up helping long ago and was off taking a phone call.

Dorian sighed in exasperation, much beyond the level John thought possible for an android.

"Will you listen to me for once?"

John feigned hurt.

"What? I always listen to you!"

"No, you only listen when it suits you. Now can we please try it my way?"

John grumbled but relented. Dorian tugged the couch back and turned it lengthways, so the longest sides were parallel to the door. John copped onto what he was planning to do and began co-operating. They angled it so the cushions went in first, and angled it again then so the back could fit through. When they had it settled in an appropriate place in the middle of the floor, Dorian caught John’s gaze and raised a single eyebrow, smirk plastered all over his face.

"Yeah, shut up alright? I'm not usually up this early; it's affecting my ability to think."

The rest of the furniture was far easier. They didn't buy a bed, as the couch doubles as a fold-out bed, plus Dorian doesn't really sleep anyway - he evaluated his system files standing up like he used to in the Precinct.

A table and a set of four chairs was going shockingly cheap, so they couldn't leave them behind. Dorian insisted on a fridge, but that couldn't be delivered on the same day as purchase like the rest of them so John shelled out for it and they were assured they would have it within a week.

"Why would you want a fridge anyway? You don't eat." John had asked him as soon as they left the shop. They strolled leisurely back to John's precinct-issued car. He honestly couldn't understand what went through the androids mind sometimes. Dorian had tried to forgo the table and chairs, as well as the chest of drawers for storing any possessions, but he simply had to have a small fridge and a couch.

"I don't eat, but you do. Also, you prefer your beer chilled, if I'm correct." Dorian replied.

John paused. Before his mind had figured out what he just heard, Dorian spoke again.

"You...will be visiting, right?"

John laughed and patted him on the shoulder to compensate for his own shock at the soft, unsure voice Dorian just spoke in.

"Sure I'll be picking you up every day for work!"

"And outside of that?" Dorian ventured, uncertainly. John thought about all the banter that they exchange on a daily basis - the teasing, the insults, poking fun at each other... _He won't be as annoying as those MXs if I decided to watch a match with him_ , John said to himself, _and he is good company in a bar_...

"Why not? Give yourself some credit - you're not like those life-sized Ken dolls."

Instead of complimenting Dorian, he settled for putting down the MXs instead. _What's your problem, man?_ John mentally scolded himself. _Just say he's good company and that of course you wouldn't mind spending some time outside of work with the guy. No need for all this roundabout crap._

"And that's good, right?"

John felt that he should grasp his shoulder or something, from the quiet tone Dorian spoke in. Just as reassurance. He chose not to in the end.

"Yeah, course that's good! Why, do you think they're better than you?"

Dorian sighed and glanced away.

"Well, they did replace me..."

_So these are the things that really bother him...what a funny little guy._

"Yeah, ‘cos you guys were too 'human' and it freaked some people out." He quipped, slapping the android on his back.

"Not you, though." Dorian smiled shyly and met his gaze with Johns again. John smirked in that crooked way of his.

"You got that right."

John was could have sworn that Dorian’s shoulders became that bit less tense.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 'Sup peeps! 
> 
> Hope you all had lovely Christmas holidays and now we're onto a brand new year!
> 
> Sorry it's not much - but I do have the next few chapters mostly fleshed out (just need editing!) :3
> 
> Hope you enjoy! 
> 
> Yuna out :D


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